Hi Anonymous

The single biggest tip I have is to take time out to study Mandarin in China (preferably at a University, full-time), before you do anything else. It was a recommendation that a friend gave to me before I arrived, but I unfortunately wasn’t in a position to do so. 

I studied for one month full-time at a private school and then had a tutor a couple of times a week. But you will reap infinitely more from your time here if you invest 12 months studying the language. Having done that, you’ll realise that you’ve only just scratched the surface, but you should be able to get a job using Chinese (a huge advantage) and read the newspaper (which gives you a direct connection to local culture). Not studying the language is the single biggest regret of most  foreigners I’ve spoken to in China.

Oh… and one more if I may. Open a Sina Weibo account. Once you learn some pinyin and a few characters it’s great practice writing short posts.